Christ from birth

Matthew 2:1-23, Luke 2:41-52, Mark 1:1-8, Matthew 3:1-12, Luke 3:1-20, John 1:1-18

The Magi gave gifts of:

a) gold because Jesus is the King of Kings.
b) frankincense because Jesus is the Great High Priest.
c) myrrh because Jesus is the Sacrificial Lamb, slain for the sins of the world.

Compare Matthew 2:13 and 20:

13When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. "Get up," he said, "take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him."  14So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt,
20and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child's life are dead."  21So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel.

Joseph was not the father of Jesus, yet he still obeyed God's will in taking care of Jesus.

At first glance, it might seem that the following passage supports salvation by works. 

Matthew 3:7But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. 9And do not think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 10The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

However, when coupled with Luke 6:44,

Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers.

it is clear that the type of fruit produced is simply an indicator of the type of tree.  That is, we are judged on our identity (constitution), not works.  This is why we need Christ to make us a new creation, changing this heart of stone into a tender heart that seeks Him and allows the Holy Spirit to produce the Fruit of the Spirit in our lives.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, I want to offer gold, frankincense, and myrrh to Christ every day with my life.  Lord, may the practical details of my life be affected by the reality of Christ's birth.  I pray that I will be an honorable and obedient man like Joseph - realizing that each member of my family is really yours and not mine.  I know that you will finish the work of refining me into Christ, but I pray that I will cooperate with you today!  May I not miss another opportunity to grow into Christ and enjoy the fellowship of unity and love with you, my Heavenly Father.  I pray this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.